Does Google need to "reboot" its click-fraud prevention efforts?

In the midst of writing last week's "click fraud" post, I was suddenly struck by something. Is Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) forcing a "reboot" of the advertising industry as we know it? Although this article postulates that Google's new universal search unveiling (really just a rework) was a causal event for the rather large 10%-15% click fraud estimates that came out of Fair Isaac, what is one to make of all this?

Google has stated before that it measures click fraud activity stringently and zaps almost all of it out of existence -- sometimes before the Google ad partner is even billed. While some Google partners are not 100% convinced of this, they continue to trust the web search leader since so many businesses live or die based on Google advertising revenue. You can be mad at the company's efforts to keep click fraud under control, but you can also be quite powerless.

The company can't just give all the specifics on how it fights click fraud, lest it enable click fraud hucksters even further. But, Google will continue to face public pressure over click fraud well into 2008 unless is devises some kind of strategy (a public one) to assure customers that it it keeping a lid on the problem. Google has some of the best engineering minds on the planet -- so if any company can get this under control, keep it that way and prove to its customers that it's not a concern, it will be Google. Time to put up or shut up.